Sooo...Now What?

So, now I'm engaged. I have this beautiful ring, I have this guy I really love that I want to marry & now what? I had started picking up bridal magazines here & there. I flipped through them all & looked at all the wedding dresses online at David's Bridal. Hmmm...I don't really like anything. I hate strapless. I hate foofey. I really don't like the idea of spending tons of moola ('cause we don't have it). And then Mike got The Letter.
The Letter would be a layoff notice from his employer. He has worked for the same manufacturing company for about 13 years. The company is experiencing some hard times & truthfully there have been layoffs going on at different times for over a year. Silly me, I kept saying, "You've been there so long they'll have to shut the plant before they get to you!" Hmmm...guess what? They might shut the plant.
The Letter says that as of December 18th there will be a plant-wide layoff. Of course, they expect this layoff to be temporary. They usually have a shut-down period of about two weeks over the holiday anyway. So, my thinking is that they are not sure at this point if they will be able to keep this plant open. They lay everyone off & then they can save some money because they won't have to pay them holiday pay (bah humbug!). Then if they need to shut down, it's already in process. In the employee meeting that was held, they said that they intended to call about 70 workers back as of January 5th. Mike is about #45 in seniority. If they call back by seniority, he should be included. Since they aren't union, who knows what criteria they will use to select employees to call back. Higher seniority = higher rate of pay so that may cook his goose.
Sooo...now what? I was thinking April for the wedding. Now we're not so sure. I've been kind of discouraged about it. But my heart & mind keeping coming back to the assurance that the Lord is in control. He knows all about it; He knows our anxieties & our desires. He will lead us for the right timing for our wedding & I'm praying He'll provide great deals along the way as we plan things.
In conclusion, if you're wondering when we will set the date for our nuptials, just know that we're wondering, too! And praying & seeking the Lord's will. Pray along with us, please.

All the Nitty Gritty Details!

For those of you who are interested, here is the extended version of our engagement story...



At the beginning of the week of October 20th, Mike suggested to me that we do something fun together on the following Saturday. Since I bought my house we have been on very few actual dates (unless you count trips to Lowes & Menards) & it has been a long time since we had done anything that wasn't family related. I readily agreed. Later that week my brother & his family decided they would come up from Kentucky for the weekend. Friday night was quickly planned full with a backyard campfire cookout for my dad's birthday (2 weeks late). A good time was had by all, but I was wondering how I could get some extra visiting time in with my niece & nephew & still do something fun with Mike that next day. I got up early (Mike doesn't usually so that worked in my favor) & went to a homecoming parade with my family. After that I picked Mike up & we went to Nashville for a few hours. It's a wonderful little town that has street after street of artsy gift shops. We had a really nice time just wandering around, looking, & even doing a little buying. I was very suspicious that he was going to take a moment somewhere during the day & ask me. We were in several really nice picturesque places but nothing happened. Hmmm....

As the afternoon wore on we were in a bit of a rush to get back to town for dinner at Olive Garden with the family. I know, I know...my family gets together so much it's probably damaging. Anyway - no proposal on Saturday.

Fast forward to Monday, October 27th. Mike had asked me if I would come over to his apartment for dinner in between my packing & getting ready for the Vienna trip craziness. I agreed with my suspicions once again fully aroused. That day was the one year anniversary of our first date. About 4:30 he called & said that his afternoon had not gone according to plan & he didn't have a plan for what to cook for dinner so would I please pick up a pizza on my way to his place? Once again, I'm confused. Pizza is not a very special dinner. In fact, we've had pizza a bizillion times since we've been dating. I was a bit disappointed. So I ordered pizza & headed out to his place. When I got there I noticed that his little kitchen table for two had been moved. Normally it sets in the wide doorway between the tiny kitchen & tiny living room. I walked into the kitchen & this is what I saw:

He's so funny! He was all nervous. He had gotten 2 dozen beautiful red roses & he had worked really hard to get his new candles to look all drippy. What a guy. He asked, I said yes, we ate pizza, took some bad pics that I will probably never post b/c we look so tired & goofy, & then we went to my parents house to show off my beautiful ring.

It was perfectly Michael. He's not one for big showy, fancy things & I loved the way he proposed b/c it was simple & beautiful.

Anybody else want to share their engagement story?

I've Got Some News!

I'm happy to confirm the vicious rumor that yes, I am engaged! Mike proposed to me two weeks ago today on October 27th, our one year dating anniversary. That was also the night right before I left for Vienna. I was a little surprised, but not completely. I knew he had the ring (we had designed it & picked it out together) I just didn't know for sure when I was going to get it ;-) You can't tell a whole lot from the picture, but the ring is in white gold with a pear shaped diamond in the center. There are pear shaped sapphires on the sides. So very pretty!

I haven't posted sooner b/c I've been trying to call friends & family to let them know first-hand. It's taking awhile & some of you are still going to get a call :-) We haven't set a firm date for the wedding yet, but we're thinking April 11th or 25th. I've also got to decide if I can plan a wedding & train for the Indy Mini!

So it's exciting times here. I'll blog about Vienna & give wedding details as they come together!